Umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end

ABSTRACT

An umbrella having a handle for opening and closing the umbrella. The umbrella includes a central shaft; and the central shaft has a first end and a second end. The second end is connected to a main umbrella frame having an umbrella canopy which is movable between an open and closed configuration. The central shaft also includes a handle section adjacent to the first end. The handle section includes a snow globe mounted on the first end of the central shaft. The snow globe includes an exterior wall and an interior chamber therein. The snow globe has disposed therein a caricature-type three-dimensional unit and movable artificial snowflakes for simulating falling snow within the interior chamber of the snow globe; and the caricature-type three-dimensional unit is visible from the exterior of the snow globe.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to an umbrella having a handlesection with a snow globe mounted on its end. More particularly, thesnow globe includes a caricature-type, three-dimensional unit andmovable artificial snowflakes being disposed within a liquid media inthe interior chamber of the snow globe.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Snow globes having figurines, winter scenes, animals are wellknown in the art. Further, ornamental handles for umbrellas forembellishment of the umbrella handle, such as decorative and carvedivory and wood handles, various geometric shapes (i.e. spheres, swords,cylinders, etc.), as well as molded handle grips having decorativecolors and shapes are also well known in the art. None of these snowglobes have been combined with umbrella handles to produce a decorativeand ornamental umbrella handle for use with umbrellas.

[0003] There remains a need for a novel and decorative umbrella handlehaving a snow globe mounted on its end. The snow globe would include aninterior chamber having a liquid media therein with movable snowflakesfor simulating falling snow, as well as a caricature-typethree-dimensional unit disposed within the interior chamber of the snowglobe. Additionally, the caricature-type three-dimensional unit would bein the form of a cartoon character, a humanoid-type body, a doll-likebody, an animal-type body or an entertainer/celebrity-type body.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

[0004] Decorative and ornamental umbrella handles and snow globes havingvarious designs, configurations and materials of construction are wellknown in the art. For example, U.S. Design Pat. Nos. D315,637 andD322,883 disclose decorative and ornamental umbrella handles. Theseprior art patents do not disclose or teach the structure and method ofuse for an umbrella handle having a snow globe mounted on its end.

[0005] None of the aforementioned prior art references disclose thepresent invention of an umbrella handle having a decorative snow globemounted on its end.

[0006] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to providean umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end for providing adecorative, ornamental and aesthetic appearance to the handle section ofa conventional umbrella.

[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide an umbrellahandle with a snow globe mounted on its end, wherein the snow globeincludes a caricature-type three-dimensional unit being disposed withina liquid filled interior chamber also having movable snowflakes forsimulating falling snow also being disposed with the liquid filledinterior chamber of the snow globe.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to provide an umbrellahandle with a snow globe mounted on its end wherein the caricature-typethree-dimensional unit is in the form of a cartoon character, ahumanoid-type body, a doll-like body, an animal-type body or anentertainer/celebrity-type body.

[0009] Another object of the present invention is to provide an umbrellahandle with a snow globe mounted on its end wherein the snow globe islight-weight, easy to clean and is made from shatter-resistant plasticor glass.

[0010] A further object of the present invention is to provide anumbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end that can bemass-produced in an automated and economical manner and is readilyaffordable by the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] In accordance with the present invention, there is provided anumbrella having a handle for opening and closing the umbrella. Theumbrella includes a central shaft; and the central shaft has a first endand a second end. The second end is connected to a main umbrella framehaving an umbrella canopy which is movable between an open and closedconfiguration. The central shaft also includes a handle section adjacentto the first end. The handle section includes a snow globe mounted onthe first end of the central shaft. The snow globe includes an exteriorwall and an interior chamber therein. The snow globe has disposedtherein a caricature-type three-dimensional unit and movable artificialsnowflakes for simulating falling snow within the interior chamber ofthe snow globe; and the caricature-type three-dimensional unit isvisible from the exterior of the snow globe.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] Further objects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent upon the consideration of the followingdetailed description of the presently-preferred embodiment when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0013]FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the umbrella having anumbrella handle with a snow globe mounted thereon of the preferredembodiment of the present invention showing the major component partsthereof, and in a fully assembled and opened configuration foroperational use thereof;

[0014]FIG. 2 is an enlarged front perspective view of the umbrellahandle with a snow globe mounted thereon of the present inventionshowing a lower catch member, a central umbrella shaft, a handlesection, a snow globe having a three-dimensional caricature-type unitand movable artificial snowflakes therein, liquid media, and a platformmember for holding the caricature-type unit thereon;

[0015]FIG. 2A is an exploded perspective view of the umbrella handlewith a snow globe mounted thereon of the present invention showing afirst end of the handle section of the central shaft being receivedwithin a collar member being mounted on the exterior wall of the snowglobe;

[0016]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the umbrella handle with asnow globe mounted thereon of the present invention taken along sectionlines 3-3 of FIG. 2 in the direction of the arrows showing the handlesection connected to the snow globe, the liquid media, the artificialsnowflakes, the three-dimensional caricature-type unit, and the platformmember; and

[0017]FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the umbrella handle witha snow globe mounted thereon of an alternate embodiment of the presentinvention showing the three-dimensional caricature-type unit freelydisposed and floating within the liquid media of the snow globe.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT AND ALTERNATEEMBODIMENT Preferred Embodiment 10

[0018] The umbrella 10 having a handle section 30 and the componentparts of the preferred embodiment of the present invention arerepresented in detail by FIGS. 1 through 3 of the patent drawings. Asshown in FIG. 1, the umbrella 10 includes a central shaft 20 having afirst end 22 and a second end 24. The second end 24 is connected to anumbrella frame 26 having a main umbrella canopy 28 attached thereto. Themain umbrella canopy 28 is movable between an open and closedconfiguration in a conventional manner. The central shaft 20 furtherincludes the handle section 30 being adjacent to the first end 22 ofcentral shaft 20. The central shaft 20 also includes upper and lowercatch members 32 u and 32 l for maintaining the umbrella frame 26 in theopened configuration, as depicted in FIG. 1.

[0019] The handle section 30 includes a snow globe 34 being mounted onthe first end 22 of the central shaft 20. The snow globe 34 may bepermanently attached to the first end 22 of central shaft 20 byattachment means 35 in the form of gluing 35g, epoxy cement, laserwelding and the like. Alternately, the snow globe 34 can be detachablymounted to the first end 22 of central shaft 20 by the use of a threadedcollar 50 or similar structure. The snow globe 34 includes an exteriorwall 36 and an interior chamber 38 thereon. The interior chamber 38includes a platform member 40 for mounting a caricature-typethree-dimensional unit 42 thereon. The platform member 40 is positionedat a lower end 44 of the interior chamber 38 of the snow globe 34. Theinterior chamber 38 is filled with a liquid media 46 for dispensingmovable artificial snowflakes 48 therein. The movable artificialsnowflakes 48 are used for simulating falling snow on thecaricature-type unit 42 within the interior chamber 38 of the snow globe34. The liquid media 46 is water, glycol or combinations thereof. Theexterior wall 36 is made of shatter-resistant plastic orshatter-resistant glass.

[0020] The caricature-type three-dimensional unit 42 is in the form of acartoon character, a humanoid-type body, a doll-like body, ananimal-type body or an entertainer/celebrity-type body. Examples ofcaricature-type three-dimensional units 42 are as follows:

[0021] 1. Cartoon characters such as Peanuts™, Superman™, Spiderman™,the Hulk™ and the like;

[0022] 2. Humanoid-type bodies such as soldiers, cowboys, Indians,firemen, action figures and the like;

[0023] 3. Doll-like bodies such as Ken and Barbie™, Raggedy Ann and Andyand the like;

[0024] 4. Animal-type bodies such as a frog, a pig, a cow, a lamb, amonkey, a pony, a donkey, a duck, a hawk, a mouse, a lion cub, a puppy,a kitten, a purple dinosaur and other animals; and

[0025] 5. Entertainers/celebrity-type bodies such as Elvis, Madonna,Celine, Back Street Boys, Tom Cruise, Mel Gibson, and the like.

[0026] The caricature-type three-dimensional unit 42 is visible from theexterior of the snow globe 34.

[0027] In an alternate design, snow globe 34 further includes a collarmember 50 for attaching to the first end 22 of handle section 30 ofcentral shaft 20, as depicted in FIG. 2A of the drawings.

Alternate Embodiment 100

[0028] The umbrella 100 having a handle section 130 and the componentparts of the alternate embodiment of the present invention arerepresented in detail by FIG. 4 of the patent drawings. Elementsillustrated in FIG. 4 which correspond to the elements described abovein the preferred embodiment 10 with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3 have beendesignated by corresponding reference numbers increased by one hundred.The alternate embodiment 100 is constructed and operates in the samemanner as the preferred embodiment 10, unless it is otherwise stated.All aspects of the alternate embodiment of the umbrella handle section130 having the snow globe 134 mounted on its first end 122 of centralshaft 120 are exactly the same as the preferred embodiment of the handlesection 30 having the snow globe 34 mounted on its first end 22 ofcentral shaft 20 except that in the alternate embodiment thecaricature-type three-dimensional unit 42 is freely disposed in afloating manner F within the liquid filled media 146 of interior chamber138 of snow globe 134. The snow globe 134 of this alternate embodimentdoes not include a platform member 40 as in the preferred embodiment.

[0029] In all other respects, the umbrella handle section 130 having thesnow globe 134 mounted on the first end 122 of central shaft 120 isexactly the same as the preferred embodiment of the snow globe 34 exceptthat the caricature-type three-dimensional unit 142 is floating freely Fwithin the liquid 146 filled interior chamber 138 of snow globe 134, asdepicted in FIG. 4 of the drawings.

ADVANTAGES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

[0030] Accordingly, an advantage of the present invention is that itprovides for an umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end forproviding a decorative, ornamental and aesthetic appearance to thehandle section of a conventional umbrella.

[0031] Another advantage of the present invention is that it providesfor an umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end, wherein thesnow globe includes a caricature-type three-dimensional unit beingdisposed within a liquid-filled interior chamber also having movablesnowflakes for simulating falling snow also being disposed within theliquid filled interior chamber of the snow globe.

[0032] Another advantage of the present invention is that it providesfor an umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end wherein thecaricature-type three-dimensional unit is in the form of a cartooncharacter, a humanoid-type body, a doll-like body, an animal-type bodyor an entertainer/celebrity-type body.

[0033] Another advantage of the present inventor is that it provides foran umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its end wherein the snowglobe is light-weight, easy to clean and is made from shatter-resistantplastic or glass.

[0034] Another further advantage of the present invention is that itprovides for an umbrella handle with a snow globe mounted on its endthat can be mass-produced in an automated and economical manner and isreadily affordable by the user.

[0035] A latitude of modification, change, and substitution is intendedin the foregoing disclosure, and in some instances, some features of theinvention will be employed without a corresponding use of otherfeatures. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims beconstrued broadly and in a manner consistent with the spirit and scopeof the invention herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. An umbrella having a handle for opening and closing the umbrella, comprising: a) an umbrella having a central shaft; b) said central shaft including a first end and a second end; c) said second end being connected to a main umbrella frame having an umbrella canopy which is movable between an open and closed configuration; d) said central shaft including a handle section adjacent to said first end; e) said handle section including a snow globe mounted on said first end of said central shaft; f) said snow globe having an exterior wall and an interior chamber therein; g) said snow globe having disposed in said interior chamber a caricature-type three-dimensional unit and movable artificial snowflakes for simulating falling snow within said interior chamber of said snow globe; and h) said caricature-type three-dimensional unit being visible from the exterior of said snow globe.
 2. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1 wherein said interior chamber of said snow globe further includes a platform member for mounting said caricature-type three-dimensional unit thereon.
 3. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said exterior wall is made of shatter-resistant plastic.
 4. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said exterior wall is made of shatter-resistant glass.
 5. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said interior chamber includes a liquid media for dispensing said artificial snowflakes therein.
 6. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 5, wherein said liquid media is water, glycol or combinations thereof.
 7. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said caricature-type three-dimensional unit is in the form of a cartoon character, a humanoid-type body, a doll-like body, an animal-type body or an entertainer/celebrity-type body.
 8. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said snow globe further includes a collar member for attaching to said handle section.
 9. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said first end of said central shaft is permanently attached to an upper wall section of said snow globe.
 10. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said first end of said central shaft is detachably mounted to an upper wall section of said snow globe.
 11. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 7, wherein said cartoon character of said caricature-type three-dimensional unit is selected from a group consisting of the Peanuts™ character, the Superman™ character, the Spiderman™ character and the Hulk™ character.
 12. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 7, wherein said humanoid-type body of said caricature-type three-dimensional unit is selected from a group consisting of soldiers, sailors, cowboys, Indians, firemen, policemen, action figures and other sport related figures.
 13. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 7, wherein said doll-like body of said caricature-type three-dimensional unit is selected from a group consisting of Ken and Barbie doll figurines, Raggedy Ann and Andy doll figurines and other dolls.
 14. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 7, wherein said animal-type body of said caricature-type three-dimensional three-dimensional unit is selected from a group consisting of a frog, a pig, a cow, a lamb, a monkey, a pony, a donkey, a duck, a hawk, a mouse, a lion cub, a bear cub, a puppy, a kitten, a purple dinosaur and other animals.
 15. An umbrella handle in accordance with claim 7, wherein said entertainer/celebrity-type body of said caricature-type three-dimensional unit is selected from a group consisting of Elvis, Madonna, Celine, Back Street Boys, Tom Cruise, Mel Gibson and other actors/actresses. 